Improvement in spiral springs for railway cars



F.w., RH|NELANDER.

Car Spring.

No. 100,926. Patented March 15, 1870.

@sind u @tithe FREDERIC W. RHINELANDER, 0F NEW YORK, N. Y.

Letters Patent No. 100,926, dated March 15, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN SPIRAL SPRINGS FCR RAILWAY CARS.

y The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same `To whom it may concern Be it known that I, FREDERIC W. RHINELANDER, ofthe city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in'Spiral- Springs for Railway Cars and other purposes; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, which represents an elevation of a spring made in accordance with my invention. Y

In the' manufacture of spiral springs, it is well known that the rod 0r bar of which the spring is formed has a natural tendency to turn on its axisin the process of coiling. When a flat rod or bar-that is to say, one that has a rectangular sectional areais used, this tendency vis resisted, and the strain upon the metal induced by this resistance is demonstrated by the fact, that in the flat-bar coiled spring, there is a change in the bar from a rectangular to an irregular-formed section. In coiling a round bar, or one having a cylindrical section, this tendency need not be interfered with, and, as in suoli instance the strain upon the metal will be avoided, it may be said that the round bar, up to a diameter, at least, which admits of properly tempering the nl etal, is, therefore, the best for spiral'springs.

Spirals made of @round bars are generally drawn or ground down at the ends, so as togive an even bearing-surface; or, where they are not thus finished, the ends are, for the sa1ne`purpose,iitted into grooved recesses of proper shape in top and bottoni plates. The flattening, drawing down, or grinding of the ends, so as to give them a wedge-like shape, with one or more flat faces, is only practicable after the spring has been coiled.y The difficulty in forming the ends in this way before coiling would be in determining how ni uch the bar will turn on its axis in ceiling, for upon this would depend the position which the tlat face of the tapering wedge-shaped end must occupy. One flat endthe one first coiled-could be properly placed without difficulty, but it would be almost impossible to coil the bar so that the opposite end should present its flat surface.

My invention is designed not to interfere with the tendency of the bar to turnupon its axis during coiling, but, at the same time, to, cause the ends, whatever may be the twist of the bar, to present a fiat bearing-surface; and to this end,

The invention consists of a spiral spring, formed of a bar or rod of metal, having a cylindrical sectional area, with conically-tapered ends, which, when the spring is coiled, will, without interfering with the tendency of the bar to turn or twist upon its axis, present at all times a dat bearing-surface, and render unnecessary the operation of drawing down or grinding of a bar or rod, a, of cylindrical section, which, before f being coiled, has its ends b conically tapered. The taper need only extend to the top Aand bottom fo'lds of the coil, or to so much thereof as needed in order to make a ilat bearing-surface. v

Under this arrangement, the bar is perfectly free to turn upon its axis during process of coiling,while it is impossible, with the conically-shaped ends, not to obtain a flat hearing-surface for the top and bottom of the springs, thus dispensing entirely with any grinding or drawing of the ends after the formation of the springs, and saving the time, labor, and expense which these operations would give rise to.

By the use of the round bar with conically-tapered ends, spirals may he 'coiled more cheaply, accurately, easily than heretofore has been the case, and with quite as even bearing-surfaces as it has been hitherto practicable to produce.

Having now described my invention, and the manner in which the same is or may he carried into effeet,y p

Whatl claim, and desire to secure'by Letters Ilatent, is-- A spiral spring, formed of a bar or rod of metal of cylindrical section, with conically-tapered ends, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my naine to this specification before two subscribing witnesses.

F. W. RHINELANDER.

Witnesses: v

A. GALLA'MX S'rnvnss, lhRnnnnro W. STEVENS. 

